New England Resorts: A Guide to the Best Rooms in Rhode Island's Ocean House

The Ocean House in Watch Hill, Rhode Island, is a faithful reconstruction of the original Gilded Age grand hotel (built 1868). (See yesterday's Hotel Detective post for more on the background of the hotel and Watch Hill.) In some sections, such as the lobby, the original architecture has been cloned through laser mapping. The fireplace is not only in the original place, but the stones, numbered and stored during the reconstruction, are in their original place.

The Ocean House is the closest THD has come to a hotel consisting mainly of one-off suites, each different and all strikingly designed. It is singular because it is anchored in the present, providing every current amenity as well as snap-to service, while immersing the guest in a verandah-and-rocking-chair era of grand East Coast seashore hotels. Here you lead a double life, past and present, both perfect tense.

Here's a guide to the Ocean House layout.

The hotel is shaped like an 'r'. The beach is at the bottom of the stem. the town and bay at the top, and on floors one and two, there are rooms along the curve.

On the stem, rooms are numbered 01 to 09, with the 01s at the seafront end of the hotel. As the room number goes up, the view of the town and bay come more into view. Here, the fundamental rule applies: the higher the floor, the better the view.

On the curve, it's the odd-numbered rooms that have the ocean views--and they're pretty-to-very good.

There are two categories of double room, Standard and Deluxe, with the latter divided into King (the bed) and Waterview. There are also two categories of suites, Signature and non-.

Many of the suites are on the lower floors, giving them beach access. But the inventory includes some astonishing rooms at the top of the hotel, one of which is as close to being in the penthouse of a cruise ship as THD can imagine.

The Biggest Suite: The Penthouse Suite has three bedrooms, a dramatic entrance, a long hallway punctuated by Tuscan columns that draws the eye into the heart of the room, and ceilings shaped by the roof, as it's on the top floor. It's a grand garret, with skylights. The living area runs the length of the room--living rooms at each end separated by a kitchen-dining room. There is 2,000 sq. ft. of outdoor space, including an
Octagon with plump couches, the perfect party space, and a full outdoor kitchen that is BYOC (Bring Your Own Chef).

The Grandest Suite: You have to wait until next week for this one. Easily the most astonishing resort room in New England and maybe even the U.S.

The Ahoy-There Suite: The Morgan, a duplex on the second floor, takes its design from the Charles Morgan, a 19th-century ship at Mystic Seaport. It's all high-varnish, brass fittings, and doors outlined in wood. There are built-in bunk beds for the kids (with built-in TVs), a kitchen with a drop-down TV to stream in cooking demos and a Molteni Range, a French black-and-brass masterpiece of culinary workmanship. The living room, done in a more contemporary classic style, is on the lower level and contains a nanny or in-law apartment. Anchors aweigh! (Photos by Chip Riegel.)

A Cruise-Ship Bow: The Napatree Suite (below) is at the end of the curve, so the outdoor deck is like standing on the bow of a cruiseship. The living has the same view and the entrée is made dramatic by a long, curving hallway. THD liked this room for its cozy grandeur, a hideaway in the sky.

For the Modernist: The staff calls The Lighthouse Suite"the purple suite" for its accent color. More important is the heavily accented contemporary aesthetic, clear plastic chairs and a curvy sectional couch in plum fabric in the living room (below). The outdoor terrace though (below second) is 100 percent New England in feel. The only thing lacking that seems promised: A view of the Watch Hill lighthouse.

The Big Picture: The Narragansett Suite, a flowing space, is near beach-level at the sea-side of the hotel. It has a huge deck, a very long living room-dining room (below) with an island counter-top, and bedrooms at each end. The master (below second) is at the front and has its own terrace. (Both photos by Chip Riegel.)

Contemporary Chic: Sea Glass is a blaze of white and ivory decor. It has an enormous living room with bay windows and an open-plan kitchen (below). The master bedroom has a window-wall and French Doors (below second) that frame the seaview perfectly. You're only one story above the beach, but the room feels more top-floor.

STANDARD ROOMS AND NON-SIGNATURE SUITES

No need to feel like you're in steerage, as some of these rooms are terrific and a bargain compared to signature-suite prices.

Club King No. 123: This L-shaped Club King has a large, shaded terrace and expansive Ocean View, along with a foyer and a fireplace. The one slight drawback: The partially-screened terrace looks out at the outdoor summer dining space of the Club Room.

Terrace King No. 205: Specify Terrace King Water View and the world opens up. There's the sea, the Club Room outdoor space is directly below, and one can see all the way to Taylor Swift's house.

Deluxe King No. 409: Every hotel has a nugget and at the Ocean House this is it: A king-bedded room on the top floor above the entrance to the hotel. It's under the roof, which gives the room high ceilings (compensates for the size) and lends it a garret feel. The windows are small, but the views are ocean and bay--all this for the lowest category room. And you get a walk-in shower and tub. THD would take it in a minute. Deluxe King 405 (below) gives you an idea of the layout and runs a close second. (Photos by Chip Riegel.)

I have misspent my life staying in luxury hotels. It started in 1975 on my post-college Eurailpass pilgrimage, when I stayed in a cheap place on the rue Gay Lussac in Paris—in a room with five other guys I didn’t know. Wandering the city, I stumbled upon the Hotel de Crillio...